Modern power system automation and smart grids rely on communication for various reasons, including critical infrastructure protection and power routing. Communication between substation devices, namely Intelligent Electronic Devices (IED), is integral for substations to keep up with their real-time operations. IEDs are embedded microcontroller systems that support Ethernet-based communication and perform several protective and control functions in a substation automation system (SAS), such as data and file transfer. Unfortunately, whenever data are transferred, there is an opportunity for the data to be intercepted or corrupted. In addition, data can be sent from or intercepted by malicious and unauthorized sources, potentially causing catastrophic consequences.
Industry has established data security protocols in an attempt to avoid the intrusion of malicious and unauthorized sources. However, these protocols often require intensive processing power for which existing, and even some modern IEDs, are not equipped to handle. Adding to the problem, some of the critical data sent between IEDs needs to be transmitted quickly, limiting the amount of encryption/decryption time and further increasing the processing requirements of IEDs. This combination of IEDs lack of processing power and the need for critical information to be relayed quickly has resulted in critical data being transmitted unprotected, leaving an opening for unauthorized and potentially malicious users to cause harm within the system.